Man accused of plotting Trump assassination claims Iran forced him to

A Pakistani businessman accused of trying to hire hit men to kill political targets, including President Donald Trump, insisted that Iran forced his actions as he testified to jurors in New York on Wednesday, Report informs via Fox News.

Asif Merchant, 47, said Trump wasn't the only potential target of the 2024 assassination scheme, telling jurors the list included then-President Joe Biden and former presidential candidate and ex-UN Ambassador Nikki Haley. He claimed that he only took part in the plot because Iran's powerful paramilitary Revolutionary Guard threatened his family.

"My family was under threat, and I had to do this," Merchant testified through an Urdu interpreter. "I was not wanting to do this so willingly."

Merchant said he had anticipated getting arrested before anyone was killed, intended to cooperate with the US government and had hoped that would help him get a green card.